Why most people don’t meet their goals

Lila Odiniav - Feb 8, 2018

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Whether you are making optimistic New Year’s resolutions, or just setting yourself some goals for the week/month/year ahead, you may already be setting yourself up to fail. Experts are able to tell you whether you are going to be able to meet your goals or not, based on what you have set yourself. There are several reasons that people fail in meeting their goals, and by learning more about these, you can make sure you don’t end up in the same trap.

Your goals are unrealistic

A lot of us are of the mindset that if we set our minds to something, we can achieve it, but as inspiring as that might be, it’s just not true. If you have set yourself the goal to lose 50 pounds, for example, is that something that is possible? Healthy? Perhaps you want to save $20,000 this year, but have you looked at whether you make enough money to make that a reality? Are there enough discretionary expenses that you could cut that would realistically allow you to save that money? Rather than setting yourself potentially impossible goals, try to aim for something that will stretch you, but is still achievable. You are more likely to stick with goals if you feel as though you are on the right path to achieving them.

You don’t have a plan

Just having the goal is not enough, you need to know how you will get there. If you want to lose 50 pounds, what are you going to do that will allow you to reach that? To save $20,000 this year, you need to know what you are going to cut out of your spending, or how you are going to make more money, in order to make this a reality. Your plan needs to be specific, realistic and time-based to allow you to meet your goals. Having a plan will not only make it possible to achieve your goals but will also be more likely to keep you working towards them, as you will have progress markers to show that you are on the right track.

You are focussing more on the goals, not the plan

Once you have set your realistic goals, and you have your plan in place, it is time to get working towards them. Keep your long-term goal in mind of course, but you really need to focus on the plan that will get you there. The plan will keep you working at your goal, and pursue the right actions to get to where you need to be. If you only ever focus on the end goal, you will likely try and abandon many different methods, without ever really getting close to where you need to be.

You are not motivated

When it comes to setting goals that you are going to achieve, you need to really want them. Half-hearted motivation will never be enough to meet your goals, even if you have a solid plan and an achievable goal. So you want to lose weight, but do you want it enough to eat well and exercise plenty? When it comes to saving money, are you willing to say goodbye to those luxuries, stick to a budget and tighten your purse strings? Your goal needs to be something that you really want to achieve in order for you to feel motivated enough to get there.

Hopefully, this article hasn’t left you feeling disheartened! As long as your goal is something that you really want, is achievable and you have a solid plan to get there that you are willing to focus on, you really can achieve amazing things!